Where to Begin?

Since Feb. 23rd, I have been a busy bee flying and traveling from coast to coast and visiting numerous wonderful individuals.

I made my way to the west coast on Feb. 24th for a little surprise my friend Kelsey and I had in store for all our Newman friends back in Bellingham, WA. The trip begin on such a positive note, I shared my plane ride with about ten Marines and had the pleasure of sitting next to one on my flight. He had never been to the Pacific Northwest before so I chatted his ear off about what to expect and how amazing the PNW is. When I got off the plane at 10pm in Seattle, waiting for me at the security checkpoint was Kelsey, with a huge smile, bouncing up and down and holding a sign that read, "Welcome Home, Katie Bug. Ah! Love you!" It set the tone for the extended weekend.

It was a weekend of love. We talked well into the night and in the morning met up with friends at a breakfast place in Seattle. It was such refreshing to see Luke Krum Krum and Lucas again. Lucas and I picked up on our biting verbal lashings as if no time had passed and it was so comforting to have that banter in my life once again. From there, we went to the Woodland Park Zoo (silly to go to the zoo at the end of Feb.) and named multiple animals and laughed together. It was freezing but so much fun.

From there I went to see my brother at Seattle University. It was really great to see him and talk with him. I am constantly amazed at how much he continues to grow in his self-awareness every time I see him. I guess I still think I'm going to see my kid brother, the same one who played Kinex and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles every day, but alas, he is not that boy anymore.

On Saturday morning Kelsey, Luke and I headed up to Anacortes to surprise everyone at the Search Retreat. We putzed around Anacortes and then around 8pm made our big reveal at the retreat. It all seems like a fast-paced blur now, but from what my mind can piece together, I had butterflies in my stomach, big, man-eating butterflies swarming around my tummy. Kelsey went first, followed by Luke and Frank and then I was the caboose. I set my bag down and prepared myself for the lovin' of a lifetime. Kelsey walked through the kitchen and led the path to the gym. When I walked through the gym doors the first thing I heard/saw was Caitlin's voice saying, "no way, no way, no way. You didn't. No way!" It was as if everyone else in the room blurred because I immediately went to her. While she cupped her face and cried her face off, I held her and quietly whispered, "surprise." We both cried and hugged for what seemed like forever. I turned around to see Heidi crying, people turning around and screaming, "wait, what? What are you doing here?" It was beautiful. I wanted to give them a gift and in the end, they gave me a gift...funny how that works.

On Sunday I got to catch up with old high school friends who were in Bellingham and that was great to see them and hear what they were up to. Sunday night, I went to the Newman Center Mass and surprised Fr. Qui-Thac. I had forgotten how at peace that Mass makes me. I forgot how fulfilling that Mass made me feel; ready to take on the week ahead of me. It was beautiful to see everyone and spend the moments I had with them. Monday was spent hanging out with everyone at the Newman Center and saying goodbye to people many times over because our departure time kept changing. Through the will of God, Kelsey didn't have to work at 4pm anymore so we could stay in Bellingham until later (turned out to be 9pm before we left).

God definitely gifted me with amazing friends; truly amazing people that inspire and enrich my life. I had let that gift slip away from my reality while in Bridgeport and this trip helped remind me of that gift. Kelsey spent most of Monday driving someone an hour south of Bellingham and back, just so we could hang out with everyone in Bellingham for a longer period of time. People skipped class to spend time with me and sacrificed studying, hours of sleep and doing homework just to spend time with me. It reminded me of the gift I have been given in each one of their souls...God is good...too good to me.

This post has gotten to be very, very long so I will write another post tomorrow about Nashville and the conference I attended. Thanks to everyone who helped make this visit to Bellingham/Seattle a memorable one that exceeded all my expectations. I love you.